September 6 in LGBTQ History

1935: New York University professor Dr. Louis W. Max tells a meeting of the American Psychological Association that he has successfully treated a “partially fetishistic” homosexual neurosis with electric shock therapy delivered at “intensities considerably higher than those usually employed on human subjects.” Max’s presentation is the first documented instance of aversion therapy used to “cure” homosexuality. For more on aversion therapy, look here.

1971: The annual convention of the National Organization for Women passes a resolution acknowledging “oppression of lesbians as a legitimate concern of feminism.”

2005: The California Legislature passes a bill (by 21 to 15 in the Senate, 41 to 35 in the Assembly) to legalize same-sex marriage, becoming the first state legislature in the U.S. to do so without judicial prompting.

2011: California governor Jerry Brown signs SB 117 into law. SB 117, also known as the Equal Benefits Act, bars the state from entering into contracts worth more than $100,000 with vendors that do not offer equal benefits to the spouses of same-sex employees.